Void Krakens
This article, Void Krakens, is still being written. The authors, Glenbfmv1, Overlord1980, and CrimsonLMB, apologise for the inconvenience. This article, Property, was written by Glenbfmv1, CrimsonLMB and Overlord1980. Please do not edit this article without their explicit permission. Overview The Void Krakens, also know as the Azathonian Host and The Blessed Shoal; are a exiled Chapter of the Adeptus Astartes, once held as renegades, they still fiercely hold loyalty to the God-Emperor and his Imperium, uncaring of how the current lords and denizens of said Imperium as a whole view them. Currently undertaking a Crusade of Penance know as the Dead Star Crusade, within the Halo Stars to prove their loyalty to the God-Emperor and his Imperium after it was held in suspicion by the High Lords of Terra and the Inquisition due to there origins. With a tragic and shrouded history, their Primarch and origin Legion held as traitors and hidden from them for a time, founded on the oceanic industrial world of Osinia, an outskirt planet located near the Koronus Expanse of Segmentum Obscurus. By a shrouded hand within the 13th Dark ''founding of the 36th Millennium were they formed, but soon after their founding they were ordered to be purged by the High Lords of Terra and Inquisition as a whole upon the revealing of their origin. For their Gene-Father is none other than the Crimson King and the Cyclopean, Magnus the Red. Due to the Chapter's skilled and numerous Librarians a vision of the coming purge was foreseen within the tides of the warp and time was bought for the Chapter. After a frenzied confrontation within Osinia's system and fearing the safety of their homeworld if they remained the Void Kraken's fled to space beyond the Imperium's borders where the Astronomican shines dimly and only the mad and desperate venture. The Halo Stars, a Perilous safe haven, for the confused and distraught chapter. Though through deeds of great selfless sacrifice and faith in the Emperor's name were they permitted to prove their worth and loyalty, through fire and blood upon a Holy Crusade in His name would they find redemption for the crimes of their father, passed down to his sons. Now viewed by some as naught more than a failed perilous experiment of heretical design, an ally of great magnitude and potential by others and a tool to be used to guard against the unknown malevolent forces that may dwell deep within the dying stars. History Even before their exile to the Halo Stars the Void Krakens were met with mistrust and suspicion, primarily due to their occultist traditions and the fervent practice of an Osinian religion known as ''The Creed of Azathonius ''that was merged with what would become the Cult Imperialis during the Great Crusade upon their rediscovery, as well as their vast quantities of Librarians, divergence from many of the rules written within the Codex Astartes, and in no little part because of their secretive, cryptic and mysterious ways as a whole, had earned them a reputation as strange and borderline heretical by the superstitious and zealous members of the Inquisitions, Ecclesiarchy and other Chapters of the Adeptus Astartes. Their unwillingness to cease and disband their occultist traditions or cut a swathe in their Librarius' numbers, condemned them and sealed their fate to ever be held within the gaze of the 'I' that never sleeps, The Inquisition, and with them the ever zealous crusading, witch despises, the Black Templars until eventually they were declared Excommunicate Traitoris upon the learning of their origin. Currently after their exile and failed purge attempt, they dwell within the shadows of the Galaxy, a place where only the foolish and insane venture, a place where the light of the Astronomicon shines dimly, a place home to dying stars and malignant entities, The Halo Stars. And while lost have their ties been to the Adeptus Terra along with any resources needed to sustain their Chapter, and as they are hunted by their cousins and other Imperial elements, they are not without allies, even if they're of the symbiotic nature, be they from the Houses of the Rogue Trades or the Craftworlds of the illusive Eldar, the Void Krakens survive and continue to wage a war against the Emperor's enemies, in his name and their protector Azathonius. Combat Doctrine Void Warfare While the Void Krakens haven't always be known as an entirely fleet based chapter, due to circumstance and survival they have developed a ferocious and deadly Void Doctrine. What knowledge available to the Imperium speak of their terrifying specialisation in Void Warfare, Close Combat Shock Assaults, Boarding Assaults,Tactical Drop Deep Strikes, Psychic Warfare and a passion for combining Boarding Shields with Meltas and Flamers, the sight of a Kraken fleet within system brings both heavy relief and wariness from any Imperial element, while broken moral and primal fear from their soon to be adversaries, be they Mortal, Astarte or Xeno. Following shortly after as the void is filled with thunderous waves of Torpedoes and lightning-like streaks of Lance Batteries and Fusion Beamers acting both as destroyer and deceiver to the enemy fleet as they provide cover for Kraken Caestus Assault Rams, Boarding Torpedoes and if a vessel is close enough, Kraken Void Breachers squads equipped with Jump Packs, Bolters, Boarding Shileds, Meltas, Flamers and Melta Charges, with support from the infamous Librarians of the Void Krakens Librarius known as the Arcanaeum Acolyte. Once aboard an enemy ship or station the Krakens Void Breacher Squads move with a surgical and brutal efficiency, in tight formations with each battle-brother shoulder to shoulder and boarding shields forming an impenetrable wall of ceramite and adamantium, denying their foe of any opportunity of inflicting damage upon the Krakens behind their guard, while the The Calvaris Maris upon their shields faces slowly strikes fear within them, for the Kraken is bane to any navy vessel be they upon the waves of Terra or within the void. As one they slowly bleed the enemy from within, with meltas reducing any blockade, bulkhead and armour to nought but molten slag and cauterised flesh, while the screeching of flamers fill entire decks with burning promethium and the Emperor's wrath, broiling bulkhead and body alike. Not even distant assailants are safe from the tendrils of the Kraken, for Bolter marksmen and Librarian sorcery haunt they every move, breaking moral and body all the same. Planetary Warfare When a foe seeks either refuge or conquests upon an unsuspecting world the Krakens bring forth their auxiliary doctrine for warfare, when set upon a worlds liberation or incursion, the Void Kraken utilise surgical and devastating assaults, preferring to decapitate their hated foe in a single blitzing shock assault, rather than a prolonged campaign of attrition, via the targeting of strategic enemy emplacements and their Commanders they quickly instil disorder and panic within their enemies ranks before finally silencing them. When a foot hold upon the planet has not yet been established the Void Krakens are quick to correct it, through a hailstorm of Drop Pods and Thunderhawk Gunships do they descend to the surface below, their place of landing depending upon the resistance of anti-air they meet, if minimal a direct assault upon the enemies' location is assured and the quick dispatch and secure of strategic emplacements and enemy Commanders follows shortly. When resistance is met upon deployment to a planets surface the Void Krakens would then prefer to deploy a vanguard force to establish a forward command centre upon the planet, with this tactical entrenchment established and once further Krakens have made planet fall within this secured zone, it is already too late for any defending force to strike preemptively, for the tendrils of the Kraken have already coiled around their throats. Utilising a blitzkrieg like stratagem, the Void Krakens advance upon their enemy, multiple tendrils of Kraken armour split from their deployment zone and surround the enemies emplacement in a act of strangulation and flanking, engaging their foe at all sides, as Land Speeders take lead, scouting their foe and highlighting fortified areas for orbital bombardment and Whirlwind strikes. Rhino's and Razorbacks storm forward as they form the bulk of the strike forces, all holding contingents of Kraken Battle-Brothers ready to descend the Emperor's fury upon their foes, Predator Tanks thunder next to them, their cannons eagerly waiting to reduce enemy armour to molten slag and burning skeletons, while Stormhawk Interceptors screech overhead demanding aerial dominance and unleashing hell to those below. Only the most fortified and durable of foes can withstand the constricting tentacles of the Kraken, as all other break and fall to ruin to be devoured by the Krakens maw. The Gladius Lex Amongst the brothers of the Blessed Shoal those that have earned the rank of leadership through acts of great valour, prowess and devotion then become a member of the Gladius Lex, the Great Council of Krakens, it is within this council that all matters deriving to the Chapter are brought to review and solutions discussed and given, and rectifications made. The Current seats within the Gladius Lex are held by. Lord Leviathan: Lord of the Void Krakens, The Great Kraken. Mistress of the Fleet: Lady of the Depth, The Kraken Mother. Depth Lord of the Abyssal Shield: Lord Aegis of the Leviathan. Arcanaeum Lord: Lord of the Librarius, Knowledge and the Arcane. Kraken Lord of the 1st: Lord of the Venerated, Azathonius's chosen. Kraken Lord of the 2nd: Lord of the Vigil, Eye of Azathonius. Kraken Lord of the 3rd: Lord of the Ordnance, Kraken of Wrath. Kraken Lord of the 4th: Lord of the Void, Dark Kraken. Kraken Lord of the 5th: Lord of the Deployment, Kraken of the Call. Kraken Lord of the 6th: Lord of the Rite, Kraken of the Offering. Kraken Lord of the 7th: Lord Victualler, Gift of Azathonius. Kraken Lord of the 8th: Lord Executioner, Kraken's Maw. Kraken Lord of the 9th: Lord of the Relics, Kraken of Hallowed. Kraken Lord of the 10th: Lord of the Recruits, Kraken Sire. Exalted Abyss Keeper of Azathonius: Lord of Sanctity, Master Kraken of the Reclusiam and Doctrinaire of the Creed. High Shoal-Medice: Lord of the Apothecarion, Arch-Healer of the Shoal. Lord Tide-Forger: Lord of the Drenchfort, Kraken-Sire of the Machine. The Triptych Amongst those of the Leviathan's council, the Gladius Lex, two of these exalted Krakens are chosen from all others to ascend to higher stature within the Chapter, with vows spoken and runes of fealty carved into both armour and flesh before the eyes of the God-Emperor and Azathonius within the Chapters Reclusiam, they become members of The Triptych and become the Lord Leviathan's closest confidants and strategists. And with him they become the sacred three, the Emperor's finest warriors and his fury made manifest within the Azathonian Host. Current Seats within The Triptych are held by. Lord Leviathan Phaedra Lolligo. Kraken Lord Vallis Venandi. Arcanaeum Lord Xanxus Völlenhünd. Notable Void Krakens Pre-Exile and Exile '''Kasbiel Cordaras' - The Black Kraken ''is a previous Arcanaeus Lord of the Void Krakens, it was Kasbiel that foretold his brothers of their origin and the knowledge of their Father and Primarch being that of Magnus the Red, though not in person, but in fervent and frenzied tomes and script, as he was the one to come into contact with a Shard of Mangus know as the Shard of the Progenitor and subsequently driven to madness with an insatiable hunger for knowledge concerning his father, and as the truth of their exile became known to him, the seed of hatred was sown and soon nurtured. Eventually after indoctrinating many within the chapter to the truth and his perspective, he and his sect fled leaving only his studies to be found by the rest of the chapter and the truth to be known throughout. Post-Exile '''Phaedra Lolligo' - Current Lord Leviathan of the Void Krakens, Leader of the Gladius Lex ''and ''The Triptych, ''and ''Exalted Lord of the Azathonian Host, oldest and chief amongst the Blessed Shoal, excluding those incurred within a Dreadnought, and one of the first to be recruited during the time of the Dead Star Crusade. Vallis Venandi - Trident of Osinia, Master of the Chosen ''and Member of ''Gladius Lex ''and ''The Triptych ''is the current Kraken Lord of the 1st Company ''The Depth Serpents, ''orphaned at a young age and destined to a life of a Hive-Rat and Gang member in the Underhives of Malcina, a Hive city upon the underdeveloped world of Nui'cie IX, for 9 years he lived a life of brutality, selfishness and strife, gang-life within the ''Dreadmouths quickly moulded his personality in a need for survival, desensitised to the brutality around him and seemingly aloof and dismissive he was no stranger to conflict and death, be it with rival gangs over territory, or against members of the Adeptus Arbites themselves. Though even at such a young age he had already began to develop his own moral code and sense of honour, along side a strong sense of devotion and loyalty to his betters and the God-Emperor of Mankind that would one day forge the Astarte he was destined to become. Upon the subsequent raid of Malcina by a Dark Eldar raiding party from the minor Kabal of the Sorrowdawn would fate reveal where his strings lay. Answering to it's call for aid, the Void Krakens fleet would soon appear in system and after a day and a half of conflict, Nui'cie IX would finally be liberated and cleansed of the Xenos upon it's surface, though it would soon be discovered that over half it's population was either deceased or taken as tribute to the slave pits of Commorragh. In the wake of the Dark Eldar raid and subsequent clean-up Vallis would be found upon the bloodied and war torn streets of Malcina by a squad of Krakens led by none other than Phaedra Lolligo, Kraken Lord of the Tenth Company at the time and the sight that met him was intriguing to say the least. Kneeling within the centre of the street, with ragged clothes, dirt caked skin, blood matted hair and eyes void of emotion and movement was Vallis, at his side lay the body of a dead Kabalite Warrior, blood pooled from it's less armoured neck and hip as stab wounds were clear to see. In Vallis' bruised hands lay there perpetrator, a long serrated blade of cruel Drukhari design. Seeing this boy of no more than 10 years standing victorious over a vicious Xenos warrior that would normally present atleast some form challenge for an Astarte, and holding it's own blade that he used to slay it caused a spark of potential to flash through Phaedra's mind, it was soon after this moment and upon the departure of the Void Krakens that Vallis would be inducted into the Blessed Shoal and undergo the trails, tribulations and augmentations to be come an Astarte. Xanxus Völlenhünd - Herald of the Forbidden Knowledges ''is the current ''Arcanaeum Lord, Master of the Lexicanum ''and Member of the ''Gladius Lex and The Triptych. It is upon the desert world and one of the chosen recruitment worlds of the Void Krakens a planet named Tetranodis, that Xanxus' story is born, this world while developed held a unequal and prejudice society. Classified as a death world Tetranodis may be it is not without it's own aspect of beauty. For it holds many bountiful oasis that stretch miles across the barren and unforgiving sands, these bastions of life each born from the world's only sources of water from cavernous underground lakes. Due to this Tetranodis is a world of two peoples, as mighty Hive-cities of rich and decadent design are birthed from the cores of the Oases like a gathering of pearl white and shining gold obelisks, while along the Oasis' boarders are collections of primitive and dishevelled sandstone villages that are in a state of constant disrepair. It is due to the nature of these diverging environments that the people of Tetranodis have built a flawed and biased system of governance, for within it's Hive-cities do the citizens of noble birth, higher standing and riches dwell, living a life of languish and glutton, the so called Masters of Tetranodis, while those of low-birth, common blood and poverty struggle to even sustain basic necessities for survival and are treated as little more than slaves born to serve every whim and caprice of their masters. It's of this life that Xanxus was born, a slave boy to a noble family with a cruel patriarch. For the first 8 years of his life Xanxus lived in a state of constant down troddence, servitude and fear from the occupants of the palace, harsh words were commonplace and beatings less than rare for any slave that overstepped or failed in their duties, for 8 years he kept himself unimportant and subservient, just another slave to be overlooked by his masters, unknowing by both child and masters that a great power broiled against the surface of this unsuspecting child's psyche, an all consuming fire set about claiming all in it's maw, even Xanxus himself, waiting to be triggered. It was on the eve of Xanxus' ninth nameday did it all come to light, during a great banquet within the palace's hall, as nobles from all across the Hive city flocked to the palace, a serving girl, a year or two older than Xanxus had the misfortune of tripping, the contents of the platter within her hand spilling upon the fine dress-ware of the Master of the Palace himself. What followed next was brutal and merciless, enraged the master struck out at the serving girl, breaking bone upon impact and sending her crashing to the floor, unfinished the master descended upon the girl with kick after kick after kick, uncaring of her pleas and cries while the nobles around them looked on in approval and laughter until finally her cries stopped and body went limp after a sickening crack and spray of blood. Witnessing this horror, something within Xanxus changed, fury boiled, eyes glazed and subconscious power came to bare, moments later the hall was filled with the screeching of Warpfire and all occupants consumed and left nought but ash, while Xanxus fled to the sands beyond the Oasis' boarder. It wasn't till two days later did the recruitment ship of the Void Krakens appear in system, due to their strong psychic presence they were drawn out of schedule to Tetranodis by the strong ripples within the Warp and the visions they held, it was within the great desert plains did they find the dehydrated and unconscious form of Xanxus and there they took him to the vessel above, a further four days passed before Xanxus regained consciousness and when he did he was greeted by the imposing figure of the Arcanaeum Lord of the Void Krakens, and there offered an ultimatum to become part of something greater or be slain as all Godless witches should. Jogrum Venschel - The Old Tide ''is a Veteran Sergeant of the 1st Company and close confidant to his company Kraken Lord Vallis Venandi, amongst the oldest and most experienced of the Chapter he has served for close to four centuries, he is rumoured to be one of the last living Krakens, alongside Lord Leviathan Lolligo, to have been one of the first recruited from the established recruitment worlds at the dawn of the ''Dark Star Crusade. Unique Chapter Equipment Mortis Capsis - The Mortis Capsis is a grenade use exclusively by the Void Krakens Chapter, used for both offence and defensive tactics the Mortis Capsis is a terrifying weapon, roughly the same shape and size as a standard frag grenade it operates in a similar fashion, once it's pin is pulled and thrown to it's designated target it explodes with a soft thud, after which the surrounding area is coated in a thick adhesive black ink that once in contact with oxygen creates a thick black, green tainted miasma that provides a blinding smokescreen, also while it's defence capabilities are easy to spot, it offensive abilities are more subtle, upon contact the black ink begins to corrode with enough potency to eat through ceramite, and the thick miasma burns at the skin and eyes rendering those that come into contact with it blind and with burns similar to promethium burns. And if inhaled induces extreme nausea, reduces motor control and eventually suffocation and collapsing the lungs to enemies without void-sealed armour. It's creation is hallowed to any born of Osinia, for the main ingredient that builds it's ink fuel is from the pods of the young of Azathonius that land upon the surface of Osinia, due to this they are considered to be relics amongst the Chapter and due how they're produced, they are rarely fielded because of their limited supply and impossibility to create since their exile from Osinia. Notable Quotes __NEWSECTIONLINK__ __FORCETOC__